mythologywikiaorg-20200223-history
One ring
The One Ring is an artefact that appears as the central plot element in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings (1954–55). It is described in an earlier story, The Hobbit (1937), as a magic ring of invisibility. In the sequel, The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien ascribes to the Ring a darker character, with malevolent power going far beyond conferring invisibility: it was created by Sauron the Dark Lord as part of his design to win dominion over Middle-earth. The Lord of the Rings concerns the quest to destroy the Ring to keep Sauron from fulfilling his design. Creation The One Ring was forged by the Dark Lord Sauron during the Second Age to gain dominion over the free peoples of Middle-earth. In disguise as Annatar, or "Lord of Gifts", he aided the Elven smiths of Eregion and their leader Celebrimbor in the making of the Rings of Power. He then forged the One Ring himself in the fires of Mount Doom. Sauron intended it to be the most powerful of all Rings, able to rule and control those who wore the others. Since the other Rings were themselves powerful, Sauron was obliged to place much of his own power into the One to achieve his purpose. Creating the Ring simultaneously strengthened and weakened Sauron's power. On the one hand, as long as Sauron had the Ring, he could control the power of all the other Rings, and thus he was significantly more powerful after its creation than before; and putting such a great portion of his own power into the Ring ensured Sauron's continued existence so long as the Ring existed. On the other hand, by binding his power within the Ring, Sauron became dependent on it—without it, his power was significantly diminished. Appearance The Ring seemed to be made simply of gold, but it was impervious to damage. It could be destroyed only by throwing it into the pit of the volcanic Mount Doom where it was originally forged. Unlike other rings, the One Ring was not susceptible to dragon fire, but it could still be heated to some extent, as Isildur's hand was burnt when he took the Ring for the first time, because it was hot. Like some lesser rings forged by the Elves as "essays in the craft"—but unlike the other Rings of Power—the One Ring bore no gem. Its identity could be determined by a little-known but simple test: when placed in a fire, it displayed a fiery Tengwar inscription in the Black Speech of Mordor, with two lines from a rhyme of lore describing the Rings: The lines inscribed on the Ring (in boldface above) were pronounced by Sauron when he forged the Ring. The Elven smiths heard him chanting them, and thereupon became aware of his purpose and took off their own Rings to foil his plan. Inscription The words of the ring-inscription are in Black Speech, a language devised by Sauron and used in the land of Mordor. The inscription reflects the One Ring's power to control the other Rings of Power. The writing uses Elvish letters (tengwar), in a mode (i.e. orthography) adapted to the Black Speech. Normally the One Ring appeared perfectly plain and featureless, but when heated its inscription appeared in fiery letters. A drawing of the inscription and a translation provided by Gandalf appears in Book I, Chapter 2 of The Fellowship of the Ring, "The Shadow of the Past". Gandalf speaks the words in Black Speech in Book II, Chapter 2, "The Council of Elrond": When Isildur took the Ring from Sauron's hand, it was burning hot, so the letters were legible. Isildur was able to transcribe the inscription before it faded as the Ring cooled. This transcription survived in a document Isildur left in Gondor before marching north to the Gladden Fields, where he was killed and the Ring lost. Powers The Ring's primary power was control of the other Rings of Power and domination of the wills of their users. The Ring also conferred power to dominate the wills of other beings whether they were wearing Rings or not—but only in proportion to the user's native capacity. In the same way, it amplified any inherent power its owner possessed. The Ring would also extend the life of a mortal possessor indefinitely by preventing natural aging, but the bearer would eventually lose their physical body. Like the Nine Rings, the One Ring could physically corrupt mortals who wore it for extended periods of time, eventually transforming them into wraiths. Hobbits were more resistant to this process than Men. A person wearing the Ring would enter a shadowy world revealing the physical world from a different aspect, from which physical objects were harder to see. The wearer was mostly invisible to ordinary beings, such as Men, but visible to the Nazgûl. The Ring dimmed the wearer's sight, while at the same time sharpening the other senses. A mortal wearing the Ring became effectively invisible except to those able to perceive the non-physical world, with only a thin, shaky shadow discernible in the brightest sunlight. The Ring slowly but inevitably corrupts its bearer, regardless of the bearer's initial intent. This corrupting power was apparently stronger on individuals more inclined to evil and selfishness. The Ring appeared as a symbol of hope, offering the power to defeat Sauron and bring peace to the world. Yet in the end, its inherent malevolence would twist its bearer into another Dark Lord as evil as Sauron, regardless of one's intentions at the outset. The Ring had the ability to change size, and possibly weight too. As well as adapting to fingers of varying size, from Sauron's to Frodo's, it sometimes suddenly expanded to escape from its wearer. The Ring might also have given its wielder the ability to read minds, as Galadriel suggested to Frodo when he wondered why he could not read the thoughts of others as she did. Within the land of Mordor where it was forged, the Ring's power increased so significantly that even without wearing it the bearer could draw upon it, and could acquire an aura of terrible power. As the Ring contained a large part of Sauron's power, it was endowed with a malevolent sentience of sorts. While separated from Sauron, the Ring would strive to return to him by manipulating its bearer to claim ownership of it, or by abandoning the bearer at an opportune moment. Despite its power, the Ring did not render its bearer omnipotent. Three times Sauron suffered military defeat while bearing the Ring, first by Gil-galad in the War of Sauron and the Elves, again by Ar-Pharazôn when Númenórean power so overawed his armies that they deserted him, and again at the end of the Second Age with his personal defeat by Gil-galad and Elendil. Ring-bearers The term Ring-bearer is used in The Lord of the Rings to describe a person who has possessed the One Ring. The term is also used to refer to bearers of other Rings of Power. * Sauron * Isildur * Sméagol / Gollum * Bilbo Baggins * Frodo Baggins * Samwise Gamgee Isildur cut the ring from Sauron's finger, and kept it until his death. Gollum, a hobbit previously known as Sméagol, had found it in the ruver Alduin, and kept the Ring for hundreds of years after murdering his friend for it. Eventually it was obtained by Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit, and used for invisibility powers. Frodo inherited the Ring from his uncle Bilbo Baggins, and later was entrusted to carry the Ring to Mount Doom for destruction. During that journey, Samwise handled it briefly. Though Déagol and Gandalf had handled the Ring, the only individuals ever to wear it were Sauron, Isildur, Sméagol/Gollum, Bilbo, Frodo, Tom Bombadil, and Samwise. None but Bilbo, Frodo, and Samwise are actually called "Ring-bearers" in any of Tolkien's works. Fate of the Ring-bearers Of the several bearers of the One Ring, three were still alive following the Ring's destruction, the hobbits Bilbo Baggins, Frodo Baggins, and Samwise Gamgee. Bilbo, having borne the Ring longest of the three, had reached a very advanced age for a hobbit. Frodo suffered both physical and psychological scars from his strenuous quest to destroy the Ring. Samwise, having only briefly kept the Ring, was affected the least and simply carried on a normal life following the Ring's destruction. In consideration of the trials the Ring-bearers had endured, special dispensation was granted them by the Valar to travel to the Undying Lands, where it was hoped they could find rest and healing. At the close of The Return of the King, Bilbo and Frodo embark for the voyage to the West along with Galadriel, Elrond, and many of their folk, as well as Gandalf. Near the end of his life, Samwise is also said to have been taken to the Undying Lands, after living in the Shire for many years and raising a large family. Tolkien emphasized that the restorative sojourn of the Ring-bearers in the Undying Lands would not have been permanent. As mortals, subject to the Gift of Men, they would eventually die and leave the world of Eä. Category:Mythology in literature Category:Tolkien mythology